Crystal and molecular structures of penta-O-acetyl-aldehydo-D-glucose dimethyl acetal and of hepta-O-acetyl-aldehydo-D-glucose hydrate

The solid-state structures of the title compounds were determined by conventional single-crystal X-ray crystallography. In both cases a planar zigzag conformation of the carbon skeleton is observed with a resulting 1,3-parallel orientation of O(2) and O(4). In the case of the heptaacetate even a second such arrangement is established between O(3) and one of the oxygens at C(1). These findings substantiate the claim that such conformations are not as unfavourable as previously was assumed by many authors.